THE COHORT 2040 CHALLENGE - HOW CAN FUTURE LEADERS BE BETTER PREPARED FOR A FUTURE OF WORSENING ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS AND DESTABILISATION OF SOCIETIES?

Attention is diverted by fear and sickness, a hole in the hull and the crews of other ships grasping for their lifeboats, and abandoning others to the storm – all of which could overwhelm the collective effort to plot a new course and to steer out of the storm. [...] This has created three increasingly severe burdens for policymakers: • to stop worsening the problem, by rapidly reducing emissions and the destruction of nature • to heal, by removing emissions from the atmosphere and restoring nature • to adapt, to ensure societies are more resilient to the inevitable and growing consequences of the crisis. [...] Realising mitigation trajectories that are sufficient to meet the 1.5C target and halt the wider destruction of nature requires a range of actions to rapidly shift societies and economic systems, including (Laybourn-Langton et al 2020): • the development and mass rollout of clean technologies • protection to stop the exploitation of people and nature during the production of clean technologies • r. [...] Attention on and cooperation to rapidly reduce and remove emissions and to help the most vulnerable and exposed around the world could be eroded and made far harder, leading to worsening impacts, which increase the chance of non-linear changes in the environment. [...] Our primary purpose is to conduct and promote research into, and the education of the public in, the economic, social and political sciences, science and technology, the voluntary sector and social enterprise, public services, and industry and commerce.